Marketing research has shown that persons who own motor coaches want more usable living space in their coaches when they arrive at a destination, yet they want to be able to travel in a more compact coach which latter is safer and easier to maneuver. In various RV vehicles attempts have been made over the years to increase the living space available to the occupants. We are all familiar with the pop-top campers offered in the past and still today by Volkswagen GMBH.
Recently attempts have been made to increase the living space available for use. Several manufacturers are now offering coaches which have a small section that can move leftwardly outward from behind the driver. The chamber that is capable of moving is usually limited to no more than 4 feet in depth and from 6 to 8 feet in length. Those seen by applicant use a pair of hydraulic rams to move the chamber outwardly. Such units offer limited expansion volume and are not very reliable due to the difficulties associated with maintaining the alignment of the pair of parallel rams.
Due to his knowledge of the problems in defining an expandable coach, applicant invented a double wall main body coach from between which an expansion chamber could move outwardly either to the rear of a coach, and if no cab were present, an expansion chamber could move forwardly as well. That invention is disclosed and claimed in applicant's co-pending application, Ser. No. 375,594 filed Jan. 19, 1995.
As a result of the search carried out with respect to his earlier invention, applicant became aware of the following U.S. Patents:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Applicant Issue Date ______________________________________ 642,991 Macfee February 6, 1900 3,212,810 Bass October 19, 1965 3,740,088 Ratcliff June 19, 1973 3,833,954 Daughenbaugh September 10, 1974 3,915,492 Agnese October 28, 1975 4,017,116 Hulsey April 12, 1977 4,106,732 Whiting August 15, 1978 4,114,942 Greiner September 19, 1978 4,133,571 Fillios January 9, 1979 4,295,679 Artweger October 20, 1981 5,127,697 St. Marie July 7, 1992 5,154,469 Morrow October 13, 1992 ______________________________________
The invention of the current patent application is neither disclosed in any of the above patents nor is the invention rendered obvious from any combination of these references.
Therefore, one object of this invention is to provide an improved coach having at least one expansion chamber.
It is another object to provide a coach having an expansion chamber that provides additional living space interiorly in the coach.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a coach with an expansion chamber which when in the stowed position cannot be seen.
It is still another object to provide a coach with an expansion chamber that is supported by members associated with and carried by the coach.
It is a further object to provide a coach with an expansion chamber which is easier and cheaper to build than those of the prior art, and easier to install as well.
It is a still further object to provide a coach with an expansion chamber that can be easily moved from a stowed first position to an operative second position by a person who lacks a high degree of mechanical skill.
It is an additional object to provide a coach which can be expanded to provide additional living space, and which coach can be used unexpanded, either in a stationary supported position or as a moving vehicle.
It is yet another object to provide a coach or other habitat with an expansion chamber whose floor overlays the floor of the main body of the coach.
It is a yet further object to provide an expansion chamber for a coach, wherein a significant portion of the drive mechanism for moving the chamber from an inward to an outward position, and back again, is disposed within the underside of the floor of the expansion chamber.
It is a most unique object to provide a coach with an expansion chamber which can be configured to extend in one of two possible configurations, either rearwardly and forwardly; or sidewardly outward and then reversibly inwards.
It is a still further additional object to provide a dual drive mechanism for an expandable structure's expansion chamber.
Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.
It is a yet further additional object to provide a deployable rail system for an expandable structure wherein each rail has a primary section and a 180.degree. pivotable secondary section.
The invention accordingly comprises the apparatus possessing the features properties and the relation of components which are exemplified in the following detailed disclosure and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.
For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention reference should be made to the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.